Animal pests such as insects and parasitic nematodes destroy growing and harvested crops and attack wood-containing structures, causing significant economic loss to property and food supply. Furthermore, animals, such as mammals, fish and birds, are often susceptible to parasite infestation and/or infection. These parasites may be ectoparasites, such as insects and acarine species, and endoparasites such as filariae and other worms. Thus, there is an ongoing need to develop active pesticidal and parasiticidal compounds to protect animals, crops, plants, plant propagation material and property against attack or infestation/infection by pests.
Domesticated animals, such as cats and dogs, are often infested with ectoparasites, including fleas (Ctenocephalides felis spp. and the like), ticks (Rhipicephalus spp., Ixodes spp., Dermacentor spp., Amblyomma spp. and the like), mites (Demodex spp., Sarcoptes spp., Otodectes spp. and the like), lice (Trichodectes spp., Cheyletiella spp., Lignonathus spp. and the like), mosquitoes (Aedes spp., Culex spp., Anopheles spp. and the like) and flies (Haematobia spp., Musca spp., Stomoxys spp., Dermatobia spp., Coclyomia spp., Lucilia spp. and the like).
Fleas and ticks are a particular problem because not only do they adversely affect the health of the animal or human, but they also cause a great deal of psychological stress and are also vectors of pathogenic agents that cause disease in both animals and humans. For example, fleas may transmit dog tapeworm (Dipylidium caninum), while ticks are the vector of pathogenic agents that transmit diseases such as borrelioses (Lyme disease caused by Borrelia burgdorferi), babesioses (or piroplasmoses caused by Babesia spp.), Ehrlichiosis (caused by Ehrlichia spp.) and rickettsioses (also known as Rocky Mountain spotted fever).
Likewise, farm animals are also susceptible to parasite infestations. For example, cattle are affected by a large number of parasites. A parasite which is very prevalent among farm animals is the tick genus Boophilus, especially those of the species microplus (cattle tick), decoloratus and annulatus. Ticks, such as Boophilus microplus, are particularly difficult to control because they live in the pasture where the farm animals graze. Other important parasites of cattle and sheep include myiasis-causing flies such as Dermatobia hominis (known as Berne in Brazil) and Cochliomyia hominivorax (greenbottle); sheep myiasis-causing flies such as Lucilia sericata, and Lucilia cuprina (known as blowfly strike in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa). Other problematic fly parasites include Haematobia irritans (horn fly) and Stomoxys calcitrans (stable fly).
Many pesticides exist in the art for treating parasites and other animal pests. These pesticides vary in their effectiveness to a particular parasite as well as their cost. However the results of treatment with these pesticides are not always satisfactory because of, for example, the development of resistance by the parasite to the therapeutic agent, as is the case, for example, with carbamates, organophosphorus compounds and pyrethroids. Thus, there is a need in the art for more effective pesticidal agents for treatment and protection of animals, e.g. mammals, fish and birds, and for protecting crops, growing plants and wood-containing structures from infestation by animal pests.
Organosulfur compounds substituted with haloalkyl groups, particularly with fluoroalkyl groups, that are active against arthropods have been reported. Published Japanese patent application nos. 2007-161617 and 2007-186494 to Sumitomo Chemical Company describe organosulfur compounds substituted with fluoroalkyl groups that are active against arthropods. International Publications nos. WO 2008/143332, WO 2008/143333, WO 2008/143338, WO 209/005110, WO 2009/014268 and WO 209/025397, all to Sumitomo Chemical Company, also describe a series of organosulfur compounds substituted with haloalkyl groups that are reported to be active against harmful arthropods. WO 2007/147888 to BASF Aktiengesellschaft describes malononitrile compounds that may include a sulfur atom that are active against animal pests.
It is expressly noted that citation or identification of any document in this application is not an admission that such document is available as prior art to the present invention. Any foregoing applications, and all documents cited therein or during their prosecution (“application cited documents”) and all documents cited or referenced in the application cited documents, and all documents cited or referenced herein (“herein cited documents”), and all documents cited or referenced in herein cited documents, together with any manufacturer's instructions, descriptions, product specifications, and product sheets for any products mentioned herein or in any document incorporated by reference herein, are hereby incorporated herein by reference, and may be employed in the practice of the invention.